Three employees at Academy Sports + Outdoors in Metairie, Louisiana were fired after attempting to stop a shoplifter who had allegedly stolen a pistol from the store. Michelle Sutton, a team lead at the store, along with two other unidentified workers, recounted the incident that occurred on December 16. They explained that they believed they were making a sale and were showing a customer a pistol when he suddenly fled with the firearm.

Upon receiving word of the theft through her radio, Sutton immediately sprang into action. She, along with the two other employees, began searching for the suspected thief, but unfortunately, they were unable to locate him. The Metairie Police Department did not provide immediate comments on the incident.

Four days later, Sutton and her colleagues were terminated by the store's firearm compliance personnel for their response to the theft. Academy Sports + Outdoors has a policy on loss prevention that prohibits employees from chasing or physically restraining a fleeing person suspected of theft. Instead, loss prevention associates or managers are allowed to approach the suspect at a "non-threatening distance" and ask them to return to the store. Sutton explained that because they had run out of the building, even though they stayed on the sidewalk, it was considered a violation of the policy.

Sutton expressed her understanding of the policy now but emphasized the need for clearer instructions and training to handle shoplifting incidents. She believes that every store selling firearms, especially concealable pistols, should have a well-defined policy and additional training to prepare employees for unexpected situations.

Academy Sports + Outdoors, based in Katy, Texas, did not respond to requests for comment from FOX Business.

In a separate incident in July, a Colorado grocery store employee was fired after recording three shoplifters stealing a significant amount of laundry detergent on Father's Day. Santino Burrola, an employee at King Soopers, was instructed by the store's person in charge to capture a picture of the license plate of the suspects. Burrola, however, ran out of the store to follow the men. He was suspended the next day and terminated a week later.